[Aquillar]

I'm a bit late to add my experience here, but the story should be told. My pump failed in January with no warning just in time for a big snow storm here otherwise I'd have taken it to my usual shop. An unnamed BMW dealership in Oakville quoted me $1500+ to "diagnose" and replace my water pump. As per http://www.bmw.ca/ca/en/owners/servi...ackages_1.html the full cost to replace my water pump is half what they quoted. I had to ARGUE with the manager about this price and threaten to involve BMW Canada before they eventually (hours later) gave me the lower cost.

If your pump fails, make sure you're not getting bent over by your stealership.

[wilsjay]

'08 335xi. Approx 60K miles. Same symptoms as everyone else. Running fine, went to yellow then maybe a minute or two later went to red. No leaks, no signs of anything no bubbling/gurgling sounds, etc.

Any way for me to verify it is the water pump before I buy one. Debating about DIY or indie, but if possible I generally like to try to know what the issue is before I take it to the mechanic. I do not have have a BT scan tool. I have OBDII scanner and a coding cable (FYI-I have not done any coding with engine, etc. on the car it is all stock).

Also recommendations on where to buy and get fairly quickly?

[XFactor27]

I recently order a water pump and thermostat from getbmwparts.com and the price was great, especially with free shipping

[wilsjay]

I ordered my parts at http://www.thebmwpartstore.com which is here in cincinnati. Just under $500 for water pump, t-stat, bolts, and coolant w/ tax.

Had an indie confirm it was the water pump first. Would be great if someone would post how to determine it is the water pump though. Hopefully I won't need it again!!!

[Roy Cormier]

Mine just failed @ 112K. I'm taking that piece of shit apart to see what exactly failed in it.

[joec500]

Originally Posted by Roy Cormier

Mine just failed @ 112K. I'm taking that piece of shit apart to see what exactly failed in it.

112k miles?? Sounds like a your POS waterpump lasted almost twice as long as most

[ArndtCraft]

Mine just gave out the other day at 110k.

[Wes335XI]

Originally Posted by joec500

112k miles?? Sounds like a your POS waterpump lasted almost twice as long as most

Yeah I'd say, got lucky. My POS went at 48K

[iturbo_bmw]

Mine just gave out the other day at 49k..

[rt-texas]

Got my 08 335 vert back today from dealer for water pump replace at 51,500. CPO car so I still have warranty till next August. Service Mgr said it would have been around $1500 if not under warranty.

[ArndtCraft]

With no prior experience, the pump/t stat replacement took me roughly 2-3 hr. Simply uncap the coolant expansion tank, drop the underbody tray, drain coolant, unbolt swaybar mounts, powersteering hose mount, t stat bolts, hose connections (pay close attention here with the metal clips), unplug both electrical connections carefully, and with an E12 (E10? maybe) socket, swivel, and a medium length extension, you can easily access the water pump top retaining bolt. The bottom two bolts are easily accessible and in plain view. Triple check everything, and top off coolant. Tighten fill cap, and go through the water pump cycling procedure. (Ignition on, engine off, hold accelerator to floor for 10 seconds, then release. Pump will begin cycling on/off for 10/12 mins. Once you go through this cycling, turn off ignition, unscrew coolant fill cap and top off coolant (50/50 mix). I did this twice, then drove car around till up to temp (10-15 mins), and shut tue car off to sit for an hour or so. You can release any remaining air in the system by unscrewing the small bleed screw adjacent to the fill cap.

[Burnie35]

Originally Posted by ArndtCraft

With no prior experience, the pump/t stat replacement took me roughly 2-3 hr. Simply uncap the coolant expansion tank, drop the underbody tray, drain coolant, unbolt swaybar mounts, powersteering hose mount, t stat bolts, hose connections (pay close attention here with the metal clips), unplug both electrical connections carefully, and with an E12 (E10? maybe) socket, swivel, and a medium length extension, you can easily access the water pump top retaining bolt. The bottom two bolts are easily accessible and in plain view. Triple check everything, and top off coolant. Tighten fill cap, and go through the water pump cycling procedure. (Ignition on, engine off, hold accelerator to floor for 10 seconds, then release. Pump will begin cycling on/off for 10/12 mins. Once you go through this cycling, turn off ignition, unscrew coolant fill cap and top off coolant (50/50 mix). I did this twice, then drove car around till up to temp (10-15 mins), and shut tue car off to sit for an hour or so. You can release any remaining air in the system by unscrewing the small bleed screw adjacent to the fill cap.

Great write-up ArndtCraft! Here's a diy video I found on the Bavarian Auto blog ... too bad that I've finally gotten too old to take on projects like this any more.

[TireFire]

Originally Posted by TireFire

My E36 328 trashed the water pump at around 80k miles (the first time i ran it hard when i bought it). Hope my 335 water pump lasts longer.

So i'm in Canada on business and the wife called saying the cars overheating. No steam, no leaks. I'm guessing it's the water pump. It's being towed to an indie shop now, should hear back about it in the morning. Car has right at 50k on it. F@CK.

[kmeghtx]

mine just took a crap on me. same symptoms as everyone else, felt a loss of power on the fwy, yellow temp symbol, turned to red after a min.

car is getting towed to the shop as we speak, waiting to see what my indy says.

car has 62,5xxx miles, thank the lord for aftermarket warranty.

[d8rknight]

Originally Posted by kmeghtx

mine just took a crap on me. same symptoms as everyone else, felt a loss of power on the fwy, yellow temp symbol, turned to red after a min.

car is getting towed to the shop as we speak, waiting to see what my indy says.

car has 62,5xxx miles, thank the lord for aftermarket warranty.

ugh... I am around the same mileage as you.. any day now it seems.

[kentgbr]

Originally Posted by kmeghtx

mine just took a crap on me. same symptoms as everyone else, felt a loss of power on the fwy, yellow temp symbol, turned to red after a min.

car is getting towed to the shop as we speak, waiting to see what my indy says.

car has 62,5xxx miles, thank the lord for aftermarket warranty.

Just had the same water pump failure at 71K. Had the pump and oil filter housing gasket replaced together - no warranty.

[kmeghtx]

Originally Posted by kentgbr

Just had the same water pump failure at 71K. Had the pump and oil filter housing gasket replaced together - no warranty.

having both replaced as well!

[X5-User]

Question to these replaced the pump at ~60k or so. After reaching ~120k do you expect the pump to fail again or is there a new design?

[rotarypower101]

Would it be a good thing to just buy one in preparation?

Where should a frugal person pick one up?
Part numbers for pump and ancillary equipment?

Cost of putting one on the shelf in preparation?

[Bavarian Black]

I belive the part number are available here-

http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-16...-e60-535i.aspx

[andy92782]

Mine blew at ~82K just a month ago. Cost was $900 at an indy for new pump, thermostat, coolant and labor.

[andy92782]

Originally Posted by rotarypower101

Would it be a good thing to just buy one in preparation?

Where should a frugal person pick one up?
Part numbers for pump and ancillary equipment?

Cost of putting one on the shelf in preparation?

Honestly if I had 75K+ on my car and the water pump was original, I'd have it changed the next time the car needed service.

FWIW, the water pump in my 4Runner's V8 is driven by the timing belt, which has a 6-year/90K service interval. It's standard practice to swap the water pump on those engines when replacing the timing belt just because the pump is otherwise so difficult to get to, even though they don't have a reputation for failing. That's about a $900 job all-in... it's not just our BMWs that are expensive to maintain.